Automobile signal



:Oct 9, 192&

L A. s. Bowr-:Rsox

AUTOMOBILE SIGNAL Filed Oct. 1,9, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l www-5555 Susu/w41 Oct. 9, 1928.

A. S. BOW ERSOX UTOMOBILE SIGNAL Filed oci. 19, 1927 ALBE/ 5. EWESOX Patented @/Ct: 1928.

ALBERT S. BOWERSOX, OE FLETCHER, HIO. .i

AUTOMOBILE SIGNAL.

Application filedOctober 19, 1927. Serial No. 227,300; i7

This invention relates to improvements in signaling devicesfor automobiles and has as its general object to 'provide signaling means adapted to be conveniently operated by the driverk of the automobile upon which the means is installed, to display precautionary signalsvto be observed by the drivers ot following automobiles, and which means will possess decided advantages over signaling devices which'have heretofore been employed. A 1

Another object ofthe invention is to provide signaling device particularly adapted for installation upon automobiles of the closed types and adapted to be controlled by the driver of the automobile in a manner to' display precautionary signals with the same degree ot certainty as though the signals were made by hand, as is usually done, thus obviating the necessity otkeeping the window pane beside the drivers seat, in a lowered or open position in inclement weather.

Another object'of the invention isto provide a signaling aevice of the class described so constructed that when actuated to display one or another of the signal members thereof, the signal member may be adjusted to any desired position and maybe maintained in such position without the necessity of the driver of the automobile maintaining his grasp upon the control or adjusting means, so that it the caution signal memberis adjusted to display position, the hand of the driwfr of the automobile may' be released from the actuating means for this signal member so long as the signal is required to be displayed.

llhile the accompanying drawings andthe description which is to follow, constitute a disclosure ot the preferred` embodiment of the invention, it will be understood that various changes may be made within the scope of what is claimed.

inthe accompanying drawings: Y

Figure lis a View in side elevation of the signaling device embodying the invention installed upon an automobile of one of the closed types: i

Figure 2 is a view in rear elevation illustrating the housing for the signal members and the manner in which the same is mounted upon the left rear fender of the automobile, the view illustrating one of the signal approximately on the line 8--8 members in display position, in dotted lines;

Figure?) isa view in side elevation of the signal proper, the signal members `being in lowered or inactive position;

Figure t'is a vertical transverse sectional View taken substantially'on the linel 4-4 of Figure 3 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view taken j substantially on the line' 5 5 of Figure 4 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;v Y

-Figure V6 is a plan view of the signal proper, the closure for the'top of the housbeing removed;

Figure 7 is a fragmentaryv perspective view A of theinner portiony of one of the signal members and illustrating a part of the means provided for actuating the same;

Figure 8 is av vertical sectional View through one of the signal members taken ofFigure 7 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows; i

Figure 9 is a vertical sectional View taken substantially on the line 9-9 of Figure 3 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Figure 10 is a plan view of the means for controlling the adjustment of the signal members;

Figure 1l is arvertical longitudinal sec-V tional view taken substantially on the line ll-ll of Figure l0 looking inthe direction indicated by the arrows;

Figure 12 is adetail vertical sectional view similar to Figure l1;` f

They device embodying the invention includes, in its construction, signal members which are mounted in a housing supported upon the rear left fender of the automobile upon which the device is installed, and, means, to be presently described, for adjusting the signal members, and in the drawings the housing is indicated by the numeral l and lpreferably comprises a :base 2 which is bolted or otherwise secured to the crown of the rear left'fender, indicated by the reference shown in Figures l to 5 inclusive of the drawings, the' housing proper'being preferably ot' sheet metal and comprising spaced side walls 3, a vertical connecting wall 4, and an soA letter F, of the automobile as clearly Y may be held in place in any desired manner and which s rves, of course, to close the upper end of the housing and prevent the entrance ot rain and snow.

The signal members may be of any desired number, and, in the illustrated embodiment ol the invention, two such members are provided, and each of these members, which is indicated in general by the 'numeral 7, comprises a `signal blade 8 which is pret erably ot sheet metal and which has applied thereto a surfacing of paint or enamel ot a distinctive color. A bearing sleeve 9 is lixedly mounted'upon each signal blade 8 adjacent what constitutes the upper outer corner of the blade when the blade is in inactive or non-display positioirwithin the housing and, as illustrated most clearly in Figure 6 ot the drawings, the bearing sleeves 9 are formed upon the relatively opposite sides oi the two blades 8, the blades Vhaving their relatively adjacent sides positioned relatively close'to each other and the said bearing sleeves 9ct the blades projecting toward t-he relat'rely adjacent side walls 3 of the housing 1. fr pivot pin 10 is vfitted through the bearing sleeves 9 O' the blades and mounted at its ends in openings in the side walls Soi the housingnear the upper end ofthe open side 5 thereof as illustrated in Figures'll and G ol' the drawings. As a matter 0i convenience, in securing the bearing 'sleeves 9 to the blades 8, and likewise to provide means whereby the blades may be maintained in spaced relation with respect to each other, the said sleeves may be reduced in diameter at their ends which are connected with the said signal blades 8 land fitted through openings in said blades and headed as at 11, the headed ends oi' the sleeves mutually abutting as clearly shown in Figure 6 ot the drawings. At this point it will be evident that the signal blades 8 may be swung outwardly, independently of each other to extend horizontally laterally outwardly eyond the open side 0i the housing asl shown in dotted lines inA Figures 2 and d of the drawings or to assume anyV desired intermediate position ot angular adjustment, the blades being normally housed within the housing 1 and, in this position, being suspended vertically `from the pivot pin 10.

Angular adjustment of the signal blades S is e'll'ected through the medium ot @emr {iexible connections which lead from actuating plungers to be presently described, and these connections, which are indicated in the drawings by the numeral 12, are preflthese guides extending erably in the form of wires t suitable length oacho'lf which connected at one end to a respective one of the signal blades 8 by a n'ieans which will now be described. rEhe means rcierret to comprises a pivot block 1B whichis ot metal kand is formed with an opening 14 adapting it to be rotatably fitted onto a pivot stud 15 rwhich is iited vupon the inner end ot' the respective signal blade 8 at that side thereoil from which the respective bearing sleeve 9 projects, and the pivot block is formed with a bore 16 oft a diameter to snugly receive the said end or" the respective wire 12, and in order that the said end ot the wire may be secured inthe bore and therefore iixed with'respect to the block, a setscrew 17 is threaded into the block and bears at its inner end against the end portion of the wire 12. In order that the pivot blocl; 13 may be held assembled with the pivot stud 15 and at the same time have tree rotary movement about the stud., the said pivot stud formedwith a circumier-A ential groove indicated by the numeral 18, and the bore 1G is so arranged `with respect to the opening 1d as to communicate, at one side, therewith, so that when the end of the wire 12 inserted into the bore' 16, the wire will engage also in the groove 18 thus serving, as stated, to connect the block 15 with the pivot stud 15. lli`ron1 pivotv blocks 13, the actiilating wires 12 are lod downwardly and through tubular guides 19 which are preferably threaded at their lower ends as at 2O through openings inthe base 2 of the housing 1, the lower ends oi through openings which will be formed in the' fender F, so that thewires 12 may be led downwardly and below the crown of the tender upon which the housing is mounted. .By reference to Figures 3, 5 and G of the drawings, it will be observed `that the tubular guides 19 are l0- cated'between the respective signal blades and the adjacent side walls 3 of the housing 1 and at this point it will be evident that when a downward pull is exerted upon eitherl wire 12, the respective pivot block 13 to which it is connected will be moved downwardly thus effecting an upward and outward swinging movementof the respective' signal blade 8, the degree ot such movement depending upon the distance to which the actuating wire 12 is moved. This adjustment oi either wire 12 does not impose any bendor twisting strain upon the wire inasv much as the bloclt 13, to which the wire is connected, is pivotally mounted upon the respective pivot stud 15, the block therefore maintaining its perpendicular position shown in Figures :t and 7 of therdrawings. From the tubular guides 19, the actuating wires 12 are led through tubular guide sheaths V21,10 the actuating devices which are mounted upon the instrument board ot the respective lbtl sheaths between their ends which are lcon-- nected to the tubular guides 19 and their ends which-are connected to the actuating devices, will, through the frictional vContact y of the wires with the walls of their bores, serve as a means for retaining the respective wires in positionsY of sliding y adjustment through the respectivesheath j l The vactuating devices for-the wires l2 I are equal in number to the signal blades Sand are mounted upony a base 'plate 22 which is bolted or otherwise secured asV at 23 upon .theV instrument'. board `24 of .the automobile, preferably at-the forward side of said board, and each of the said devices comprises ay tubularbarrel25 whichextends forwardly from the base plate 22..and. in which is slidably mounted a plunger 26.the rear end of which extends' through the'in- `ner end of the barrel vand an Vopening 27 formed in the base plate 22, and vlikewise through an opening 28 which is formed in the instrument board 24, the plunger being provided at its innerend with a `finger knob 29 which may be grasped for the purpose of sliding the plunger longitudinally in the respective barrel. withan axially located bore 30 of small diaineter into which is fitted-the other end of the associated wire 12, and a set screw 3l is adjustably threaded in an'opening 32 provided in the upper side of the respective plunger and bears at its lower end against the inserted end of the said wireY vso asv'to securely connect the said end of the wire with the plunger.. The set screw 31 projects upwardly through aV slot 33 formed longitudinally in the. upper side ofthe plunger 25, and in this manner vrotation rof `the plunger within the barrel is prevented. The

barrel is interiorly threaded at its forwardend so as to accommodate la threaded coupling sleeve 34 upon which is formed a polygonal portion 35 for the application of a small wrench, whereby the couplingY may be tightened in the end of the respective barrel 25.

from the lower ends of the tubular guides- 19, to the respective barrels 25, the necessary deviations from a straight line of extent, be-

The plunger is formedk A cap nut 36 is fitted onto the for-v ward end of the coupling sleeve 34 and ing preferably effected by gradualjbendsjin the said sheaths. Y Inasmuch `as the traflic regulations, in various localities, may necessitate the employment of different numbers of signal blades and signal vblades of vvarious colors or designs, or bearing various warning words, the present invention is not infany way limited to the number of suchl blades .and` likewise isfnot limited to the character ofthe blades.V It will be evident however that the invention providesfor adjustment of the blades to fully extended 'horizontal position or to `any desired intermediate position of angular adjustment and itfwill beevident," from the foregoing description, that due rto the frictional Contact of the actuating wires 12 with the respective sheaths 21, the respective plungers '26 may be adjusted by pulling or, pushing upon the same, so as to effect theV desired angular. adjustment of the" respective signal blades and likewise the adjustment` of f the blades to yinactive or concealed .position within ther housing .1, thus providingy for maintenance `of the signal blades rin any position to which they may be adjusted, with out the necessity of the driverof the automobile maintaining a grasp on the respective actuating plunger. It 'will alsor be evident` that, by the use of the device, lthe necessity of leaving the pane'of `the door ofthe automobile next adjacent the driver, in anl open or lowered position, isv entirely avoided.

It will be understoodofcourse that the .signal blades are independently adjustable and that .either blade lmay be displayed alone in' a 'horizontal position' or any intermediate position of langular adjustment, or that. l

both blades may be` simultaneously displayed in different positions of angular adjustment.

It will alsoy be evident fronrthe foregoing` description and from van inspection of the drawings that .the presenceV of the housing for the signal blades, upon the left rear .fender of the automobile upon which the signal deviceis installed, does not detract from the artistic and graceful appearance of the body ofthe automobile, 4and likewise, the actuating mechanism which is mounted upon the instrument board will occupy but-little space and,.due to the factthat ythe base plate of this portion of.v the device is secured by two bolts, only, through the forward side of the instrument board, only the heads of these bolts and thefknobs at the rear ends of theA plungers appear at the face of the board.y

It will be understood that in assembling the wires 12 with the plungers 26, the wires having previouslyy been connected with' the pivot members 13 of the signal platesiand having been led through the tubular guides 2l, each wire may be fitted at its said end through the bore-0f the respective plunger and a pull exerted upon the wire su'licient to suitably tension the same, after which the .said screw 3l may be tightened and the surplus length of wire cut oilat the respective yend of the plunger.`

housing in various positions of angular ad-V justment, a manually operable actuating member, means for supportingvthe same, a tubular guide sheath extending between the said housing and the supporting means for the a-ctuating member, and a` semi-flexible connecting element operatively connected with the signal member and with the actuating member and extending through said sheath and "in rictional contact with the sheath whereby'to provide for maintenance of the signal member in positions of adjustment. v Y l 2. lIn signal mechanism of the class described, a housing, a signal blade suspended within the housing `for swinging adjustmentinto and out of display position, an attachingmember pivoted to the said signal blade eccentric to the point of suspension thereon-an actuating member, and a connecting wire connected to the said pivoted attaching member and to the said actuating member.

3. In signal mechanism of the class described, a housing, a signal blade suspended within the housing for swinging adjustment into and out of display position an attaching member pivoted to the said signal blade eccentric to the point of suspension of the blade, a tubular guide-within the housing, an actuating member, and a wire connected to the actuating member extending through said guide and connected to the said attaching pivoted member. l

4.. In signal mechanism of the yclass described, a housing, a signal lblade suspended within the housing for swinging adjustment into and out of display position, a pivot stud Y extending, from one side .of the blade and having a circumscribing groove therein, a pivot block pivotally fitted to .said stud, the said block having a boretherein, a

Vguide member within the housing, a wire iitted at one Vend in the bore in the block and engaging inthe said .groove in the pivot stud and, by' reason of' plunger slidably fitted in thek barrel, means upon one end of the plunger whereby the same may be .adjusted inthe barrel, the plunger at its other endA having a socket, a flexible element fitted at one end Ain said socket, the said element being vconnected at its other end to the signal blade adjacent the point of suspension of said blade, and means securing the first mentioned end loi the said connecting element in the said socket in the plunger.V

6. In signal mechanismv of the class de-l scribed, the combination with a signal blade suspended for swinging adjustment into and out of display position, of means for adjusting the blade comprising a barrel, a plunger slidably fitted in the barrel, the barrel having a longitudinal slot therein, a inger piece upon one end of the plunger exteriorly of the barrel whereby the plunger' may be adjusted y in the barrel, thevplunger at its other end having an axial socket therein, 'a lexiblev element iitted at one end in said socket, the said elementY being connected at its other end to the signal blade adjacent the point of suspension of said blade, and a binding screw threaded in the plunger and binding the iirst mentioned end of the flexible element in the' said socket, the said binding screw extending through the slot in the barrel and constituting means, engageable with the end walls of the slot, to limitthe sliding movement of the plunger in the barrel.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

' ALBERT s. now'nnsox.- 

